Time to Stop Using Microsoft Security Essentials ?

Time to Stop Using Microsoft Security Essentials ?

Leo goes directly to Microsoft to clarify recent comments from a company spokesperson that some think implied “that Microsoft was giving up on Microsoft Security Essentials”.–PC Pitstop

I read an article last week that basically said Microsoft had give up competing with other anti-malware tools and that Microsoft Security Essentials wasn’t going to be any good any more. The article recommended that I quit using it immediately and switch to something else. What do you think? Do I need to stop using Microsoft Security Essentials?

No.

No you don’t. If you’ve been happy with it, you’re perfectly welcome to keep on using it as you have in the past.

To put it a different way, I’m not changing my recommendation. Microsoft Security Essentials remains my recommendation for most people. I’m also not changing what I use myself, which is MSE.

As it turns out, the majority of the “journalism” on the topic over the past couple of weeks has simply been repeating a single source of information. Worse, the repetition included not only a couple of quotes without full context from a Microsoft spokesperson and also additional speculation by the author of that original piece. As the story was repeated, even more speculation was added and assumptions were made.

The result was quite the kerfuffle.

Now, I don’t call myself a “journalist” – I’m just a geek with a voice on the web trying to help people use their computers. But even I know that just repeating and embellishing what others are saying about what others are saying isn’t the right way to approach something like this.

So I took a different approach. I went to the source and contacted Microsoft directly for clarification.